Since Colombia’s energy regulator certified Bioenergy as a producer on January 31, the company has produced some 113,000 liters of ethanol. But now that the company has officially entered its operational stage, after reaching a continuous production level on March 18, according to Bioenergy, it is now ready to ramp up its output and begin marketing and selling its fuel product more widely.

Bioenergy, which is operating from its El Alcaraván plant in the department of Meta, is currently storing its ethanol as it strives to hit its production capacity of 504,000 liters of ethanol per day. Rafael Pittaluga, general manager of Bioenergy, applauded he company’s growth since realizing its first liter of output on December 21 last year, after which it awaited approval from the Ministry of Mines and Energy.

Photo: Bioenergy’s plant in Meta has a production potential of more than 500,000 liters per day of ethanol.

“The certification as a producer of ethanol represented a great achievement for the company, in that it allows us to comply with the quality standards required by Colombian legislation for biofuel marketing,” said the Rafael Pittaluga, general manager of Bioenergy.

In addition to sales from its ethanol product, which is a plant-based fuel blend that includes 10% gasoline by volume, the firm also produces its own electricity in order to be self-sustaining. Bioenergy plans to sell any excess supply through a generator that is already connected to Colombia’s national electric grid.

Thus far, it has already generated a cumulative 51 megawatt hours, an amount large enough to power some 250 homes for a month, according to the company. At full capacity, Bioenergy expects to generate 35 megawatt hours that it can send into the grid.

“We have made significant progress in the development and stabilization of the agroindustrial complex for the production of ethanol in Colombia,” said Pittaluga.

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Jared Wade is editor in chief of Finance Colombia and a Bogotá-based journalist with 15 years of experience covering business, financial services, and Latin America. Email him at jared.wade(at) financecolombia.com or follow him on Twitter at @Jared_Wade.